#wendy mccolm

[theprofessorofdesire]

[picsinhead-blog]

Quick Sundance/Slamdance Recap

Quick Sundance/Slamdance Recap

I went to Park City, UT for Sundance and Slamdance* last week, only my second time in person (the first was 2010). My primary purpose was to meet with filmmakers and to promote filmmaking in the Rochester/Finger Lakes region; I did, however, make some time to see some films. When I’m participating in a festival or event for work, I choose the films I see based on a set of criteria – it’s not about what Tim WANTS to see, it’s about seeing the work of filmmakers I’ve connected with or hope to connect with. The nice thing about this is that I usually don’t even read a synopsis of the film before I see it, so I get to experience the film without preconceptions – which means surprises.**

This is a rundown of last week in Sundance/Slamdance screenings, in the order I saw them, with brief reactions. Each and every one of these films is worthy of a lengthy review and discussion, and I’m more than happy to chat about them – but this is a document of my week in movies in Park City, not really about the films themselves.

Mutt (Sundance, Eccles Theater, Monday, 1/23 2:55 PM – PREMIERE) 24 hours in the life of a young trans man in NYC, during which individuals from various parts of his past enter his life, each challenging and illuminating aspects of his identity. I got to the theater by the skin of my teeth – the Sundance pre-roll had already begun. There was some confusion about the buses – I met a couple of filmmakers from LA, and we followed the advice of a very friendly person who seemed to know what she was talking about, but almost certainly added ten minutes to our ride to the theater. The lower level of the Eccles theater was packed, so I was up in the balcony. The screening was open captioned, I’m sure because several of the characters are bilingual, but also perhaps because of a push for accessibility at Sundance screenings.

Love Dump/Mahogany Drive (Slamdance, Treasure Mountain Inn Ballroom, Monday, 1/23 8:00 PM) Mahogany Drive is a wild short about three Black men who discover their Air BnB is killing white women. Love Dump is a parody of Hallmark romances about a couple finding each other among the trash in Chicago. My first Slamdance screening! The ballroom is small, with risers and individual chairs for perhaps 60 people. I met the filmmakers (director, writers/stars, and DP) in the hallway as they were encouraging people to see the film (it hadn’t sold out). I also met a young guy from New Hampshire who was attending film festivals in lieu of film school, and chatted with him about (relatively) obscure Cronenberg films.

Fremont (Sundance, Virtual, Tuesday 1/24) Fremont is the story of a young woman who served as a translator for the US Armed Forces in Afghanistan, and is now working at a fortune cookie factory. Wry and understated, Fremont is a delightful film.

Fuzzy Head/Write a Song About Heartache (Slamdance, Treasure Mountain Inn Ballroom, Tuesday 1/24 3:15 PM) Write a Song About Heartache is a clever short about a country singer and his unusual songwriting partner (you have to see it!). Fuzzy Head is a trip through the cluttered and unreliable recollections of a young woman whose mother has died of a gunshot wound – and the question of who pulled the trigger. Back to the ballroom at the Treasure Mountain Inn! Wendy McColm, Writer/Director/Star of Fuzzy Head had left printed sheets with ornate poetry and metal keys on strings with QR codes taped to them by hand. The QR codes led to her website (https://www.wendyfilms.com/). I found this personal touch, this engagement with the audience, to be very moving, and emblematic of the attitude of Slamdance filmmakers. I took one of the keys for my four year old niece, who I hope will use it as inspiration as she develops her creativity. I spoke with the Fuzzy Head team (Wendy herself, and her producers, cast, and art director) – they’re passionate filmmakers and lovely people.

Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls (Sundance, Virtual, Tuesday 1/24) With echoes of Ernest P. Worrell, online character Onyx the Fortuitous makes his feature debut in a story involving a devil worship cult, a haunted mansion, and some precious action figures. What’s remarkable to me about this film, which is described as a “throwback,” is how it melds internet culture with tried and true genre filmmaking – to me, it seems less of a throwback and more of a bellwether. Frustratingly, I was fighting sleep for the last part of the film, so I’m very much looking forward to revisiting it.

The Accidental Getaway Driver (Sundance, Virtual, Wednesday 1/25) An elderly rideshare driver picks up three prison escapees; they kidnap the driver and over the course of their time together, unexpected bonds develop, existing bonds are tested, and the four men’s pasts are uncovered as their futures become increasingly certain. It’s an intense, involving film that melds thriller elements with character study.

MiND MY GOOFiNESS: the Self Portrait (Slamdance, Virtual, Wednesday 1/25) Shot in portrait mode, this is a day in the life of one guy in LA who bounces from encounter to encounter – with friends, relatives, and strangers – with each encounter revealing at least some of how he sees himself. Quirky, engaging, and offbeat – a bit of a riff on Slacker.

Space Happy: Phil Thomas Katt and the Uncharted Zone (Slamdance, Virtual, Wednesday 1/25) A straightforward, pleasant, engaging documentary about Pensacola, FL local celebrity and late night television personality Phil Thomas Katt, whose lo-fi music videos for an eclectic group of would be local stars took YouTube by storm in the late aughts. There are moments in this doc that moved me more than anything else I saw during the week.

Past Lives (Sundance, Ray Theater, Thursday 1/26 8:15 AM) After emigrating from Korea as a child, a woman reconnects with a childhood friend years later at very different points in their lives. This was an early morning screening and it was fun to start the day with an excited audience.

Free LSD (Slamdance, Treasure Mountain Inn Ballroom, Thursday 1/26 5:00 PM – PREMIERE) Free LSD is a nearly indescribable sci-fi/horror/fantasy head trip starring the members of punk supergroup OFF! as parallel versions of themselves who have to save the world through their music. And drugs. The closing night film of Slamdance 2023, this was a super cool experience – an excited crowd, filmmakers who were seeing their film, a true labor of love, with an audience for the first time, and a film festival putting the closing exclamation on an exuberant year of programming. The best thing for me: the guy I’d met at the Love Dump screening sat with me, and after the film looked at me and asked, “Have you ever seen anything like that?” And – I mean, yeah, I have, sorta, but I’m twice his age, and it was so exciting to be there for someone having a singular, eye-opening filmgoing experience.

Jamojaya (Sundance, Virtual, Friday 1/27) A young Indonesian rapper is in Hawaii to record his major label debut and to shoot the accompanying video, when his father (and former manager) shows up unexpectedly, creating unforeseen complications. It’s a simple setup for a complex, ornate, stylish film that examines complex relationships across cultural boundaries.

The Persian Version (Sundance, Ray Theater, Friday 1/27 2:15 PM) A young writer explores her history and that of her family, from her parents marriage in Iran in the 1960s through her childhood in the 1980s and 1990s spent between Iran and the US. (Honestly, I don’t know how to describe this film in one sentence – I think I kind of did it, but I know I didn’t sell it. It’s a magical film that dances (sometimes literally) among tones, among generations, and through the lives of its characters. See it!) I bought my ticket to this screening about an hour before the Sundance awards were announced – this one won both the audience award and the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award in the U.S. dramatic competition. I was even more excited to see it, and the theater filled up with people making last minute decisions to see the film. It was wonderful to laugh and cry (not me, but the rest of them) with an audience through an utterly unpredictable film. I sat next to a young Sundance Industry volunteer from LA who had a loud and infectious laugh.

A Perfect Day for Caribou (Slamdance, Virtual, Saturday 1/28) An old man reconnects with his adult son and seven year old grandson in a cemetery on the day he plans to commit suicide. Offbeat, droll, often very funny, and gorgeously shot in black and white, A Perfect Day for Caribou explores generational rifts and the complexities of relationships defined largely by shaky memories and secondhand recollections.

Young. Wild. Free. (Sundance, Virtual, Saturday 1/28) In a weird mashup of Bonnie and Clyde, Something Wild, and Menace II Society, a Black high schooler meets a free spirited foster kid who pushes and pulls him through new experiences that range from mischievous to dangerous to exciting and ultimately to tragic. This is the only Sundance film I saw (out of eight – nine if you count Infinity Pool, see below) that did not fully work for me. Avoiding spoilers, I will just say that the narrative problems created by the ending are not justified by any dramatic contributions it makes to the film as a whole.

Unicorn Boy (Slamdance, Virtual, Saturday 1/28) A young animator in Los Angeles becomes entangled in the affairs of a parallel world filled with unicorns and rainbows and fantastic creatures, while trying to come to terms with personal crises in their real life. Okay – the only possible negative about this film is that I think it’s overlong, but it’s a wildly creative and very moving independent animated feature. It’s great.

Waiting for the Light to Change (Slamdance, Virtual, Saturday 1/28) A group of friends spend a week at a lake house belonging to one of their relatives; during the time, relationships are grown, tested, altered and redefined. Sort of a lo-fi, modern take on The Big Chill, the film is quiet and restrained, chilly, sincere, and honest.

*For those who may be unaware: the Slamdance Film Festival runs concurrently with Sundance in Park City, and is a festival with a very different vibe and energy – punkier, scrappier, smaller, but just as devoted to filmmakers and film lovers.

**For instance – most of the films I sought out were American productions, but I was surprised when nearly every one from Sundance heavily featured non-English dialogue – Spanish in Mutt, Dari and Cantonese in Fremont, Vietnamese in The Accidental Getaway Driver, Bahasa Indonesian in Jamojaya, Korean in Past Lives, Persian in The Persian Version.

[movies-to-add-to-your-tbw]

Title: Mr. Right

Rating: R

Director: Paco Cabezas

Cast: Sam Rockwell, Anna Kendrick, Tim Roth, James Ransone, Anson Mount, Michael Eklund, RZA, Douglas M. Griffin, Katie Nehra, Jaiden Kaine, Luis Da Silva Jr, Elena Sanchez, Garrett Kruithof, Christopher Matthew Cook, Wendy McColm, Ross Gallo

Release year: 2015

Genres: action, comedy, crime, romance

Blurb: A girl falls for the perfect guy...who happens to have a very fatal flaw: he’s a hitman on the run from the crime cartels who employ him.

[whiskeyandphotos]

Wendy McColm (director of the movie Fuzzy Head) and I went downtown a while back. First photos I took on my new-to-me Fuji X-T3. Couldn’t be happier.

[louobedlam]

7.31.12

Wendy McColm

[nonfilms]

2018 was an excellent year for cinema. No list can ever properly capture the individual experience or impact that a work of art can award a spectator, but the following selections were the films that truly spoke to us or continued to haunt our minds long after leaving the theater.

Chained for Life (dir. Aaron Schimberg, USA)  

24 Frames (dir. Abbas Kiarostami, Iran)

Burning (dir. Lee Chang-dong, South Korea)  

La Casa Lobo (dir. Cristóbal León & Joaquin Cociña, Chile)

First Reformed (dir. Paul Schrader, USA)  

An Elephant Sitting Still (dir. Hu Bo, China)

The Strange Ones (dir. Lauren Wolkstein & Christopher Radcliff, USA)

Bisbee ‘17 (dir. Robert Greene, USA)  

Zama (dir. Lucrecia Martel, Argentina)  

Madeline’s Madeline (dir. Josephine Decker, USA)

The Other Side of the Wind (dir. Orson Welles, USA)  

My First Film (dir. Zia Anger, USA)

The Favourite (dir. Yorgos Lanthimos, Ireland/UK/USA)  

The Image Book (dir. Jean-Luc Godard, France)

Scarred Hearts (dir. Radu Jude, Romania/Germany)  

The Wild Boys (dir. Bertrand Mandico, France)

Cold War (dir. Paweł Pawlikowski, Poland)  

Wildlife (dir. Paul Dano, USA)

November (dir. Rainer Sarnet, Estonia)  

Fingerilla (dir. Micah Vassau, USA)

The Grand Bizarre (dir. Jodie Mack, USA)  

You Were Never Really Here (dir. Lynne Ramsay, UK/USA)

If Beale Street Could Talk (dir. Barry Jenkins, USA)  

Shoplifters (dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda, Japan)

Birds Without Feathers (dir. Wendy McColm, USA)  

Hale County, This Morning, This Evening (dir. RaMell Ross, USA)

Insects (Hmyz) (dir. Jan Švankmajer, Czech Republic)  

Bathtubs Over Broadway (dir. Dava Whisenant, USA)

Roma (dir. Alfonso Cuarón, Mexico/USA)  

Dead Souls (dir. Wang Bing, China)

Although it was produced in 1980, Bill Gunn’s Personal Problems remained unaired for decades since. Thanks to Kino Lorber, it was finally released theatrically this year, as well as a 4K restoration fo his feature film Ganja & Hess.

The other massively overlooked piece of film history that was finally awarded a new restoration, and thus an entirely new audience, is Wanda (1971), the sole directorial feature from Barbara Loden.

Other recommended feature films: Mandy, Thunder Road, Icepick to the Moon, Bernard and Huey, Liyana, They’ll Love Me When I’m Dead, Savage Youth, Sorry To Bother You, M/M, Nancy, Leave No Trace, I Had Nowhere to Go, Man on Fire, A Feast of Man, Lean on Pete, Don’t Worry He Won’t Get Far on Foot, Milford Graves Full Mantis, Lowlife, Shoot the Moon Right Between the Eyes, Black Panther, Support the Girls, Cam, Rodents of Unusual Size, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Negro Terror, Happy as Lazarro, Taste of Cement, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, BlacKkKlansman, Isle of Dogs, Three Identical Strangers, Vox Lux, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

[iheartmoosiq]

I don’t think we can ever pass up on sharing LÉON, we're far too invested in our love for her smoky charred, husky rich voice and her snappy assertive, fiery smoldering pop charisma. It feels like we’ve been waiting for much more than three years for a debut album from the Swedish singer songwriter. And 2019 is shaping up to be the year it finally happens. On the back of her welcome appearance on Grey’s Want You Back comes You And I, a new song and a celebration of news of her forthcoming full length release. You And I is a gloriously uptempo single produced by Electric, a luxuriant and flawless ballad bursting with tasteful star power. It comes with a stunning official video directed by Wendy McColm that showcases the effortless ease in which LÉON is able to captivate us. It’s like being starstruck, time and time again. Aside from LÉON’s debut album arriving on March 1st, the striking chanteuse has also announced that she’ll be returning to the stage from March onwards for the first leg of her 2019 ‘You And I’ World Tour, presented by Ones to Watch. It kicks off in her native Sweden on March 30th before traveling across Europe and wrapping in London on April 8th. LÉON will then cross the Atlantic for her North American headlining tour, with 20 stops across the nation, including a performance at August Hall in San Francisco on May 10th that I’m gutted to have to miss, due to a close friend’s wedding in Hawaii. It’s such a cruel twist of fate. You can find her tour itinerary, here. Pre-order LÉON’s debut album, here.

[onestowatch]

LÉON Shares a Complicated Love Story in “You And I” Ahead of Album & Tour Launch

Sweden’s sweetheart LÉON is seriously dominating the indie-pop scene right now, and we’re absolutely gushing over her. At only 24 years old, LÉON has captivated the loving hearts of millions worldwide with her passionate songwriting and authentic personality. With Ones To Watch Presents: LÉON’s ‘You and I’ Tour Part 1 and her highly-anticipated self-titled debut album, LÉON is now treating us to her glorious new single, “You And I.”

LÉON credits “You And I” as the first song she wrote for her self-titled record, so this is definitely an extra special release for the rising indie-pop artist. “You And I” reflects on a broken relationship between two people who may not necessarily be good for each other, but LÉON suggests that there’s still an irresistible connection between the pair. Directed by Wendy McColm, the “You And I” music video sees LÉON go through numerous outfit changes as she dances around barefoot in an aged theatre. Whether she’s in a dressing room surrounded by limitless bouquets of gorgeous flowers, a decently clean restroom with light green wallpaper, or onstage in a stylish pant suit, LÉON radiates an inviting energy as she sings the emotive lyrics. With “You And I” being the third vibrant track we’ve heard from LÉON since the fall of 2018, we’re marking our calendars for her debut self-titled album on March 1.

On her forthcoming album, LÉON shared:

“I want people to listen and relate. This album is something I’ve had in my head forever, but didn’t bring to life until now. It’s different and bright.”

Take a brief moment to lose yourself with “You And I,”  before you buy your tickets to LÉON’s upcoming ‘You And I’ Tour.

+ Revisit LÉON’s stunning All Eyes On performance of “Liar:”

[upsmagazine]

57 Stand-Out Pieces in And Other Stories This Spring.

57 Stand-Out Pieces in And Other Stories This Spring.

I was one of the many eagle-eyed millennials swept in by Wendy McColm’s cinematography when And Other Stories first opened its doors back in the spring of 2013. ‘Rendez-vous’, an idiosyncratic fashion film, featuring the stylish Jeanne Damas, alluded to a narrative that set the tone of what was to follow. The subtext was the age-old fashion conundrum—having too many clothes, yet nothing to wear.…

[theprofessorofdesire]

[tehpoptartkid]

Happy Halloween! Here's a sketch I helped edit for a good friend of mine. Introducing Pie Ha Ha On The Beat!

Enjoy! :) 

[drrubinspomade]

#wendy mccolm

YES, YES. GREETINGS FROM LOS ANGELES. We have found these photos in our interweb travels. if you like what you see… We urge you to further investigate the creator(s) and/or subjects of the above work and fan them, sign them, hire them.

If you’d like us to remove, or you know who made this so that we can credit, shoot us a holler.

www.DrRubins.com

Gracias.

[apocalypticmovierp]

‘Birds Without Feathers’ Trailer: Fellini Meets Solondz Meets Lynch [Slamdance Exclusive]

The Sundance Film Festival is where next year’s awards contenders emerge, but the Slamdance Film Festival is where the next generation of bold cinematic voices take flight. Writer and director Wendy McColm is certainly one to keep an eye on, as her feature directorial debut “Birds Without Feathers” reveals a distinct voice behind the camera.

In addition to writing and directing the film, McColm stars as well, along with Lenae Day, Cooper Oznowicz, William Gabriel Greer, Sara Estefanos, and Alexander Stasko.

Continue reading ‘Birds Without Feathers’ Trailer: Fellini Meets Solondz Meets Lynch [Slamdance Exclusive] at The Playlist.

want watch movies online from The Playlist http://ift.tt/2FDwpqf by via watch movies online via IFTTT

[synergetic24fps]

Written and Directed by Wendy McColm Six strange strangers get attention and validation out of one another in toxic and possibly ineffective ways. Among them is a wannabe Instagram celebrity who compulsively asks people to take her picture, a literal identity thief with an endless cache of costumes to match her personas and a depressed motivational speaker on his way to give the performance of a lifetime. Over the course of a weekend, people will be punched, posters of celebrities will be violated, birthdays will be ruined and everyone's sense of worth will be challenged. https://ift.tt/29A9Xkw https://ift.tt/2LVghGd by Synergetic Films

[steenblikrs]

6º - Part 2 from Jennifer Ruiz on Vimeo.

Watch EP 1 here - vimeo.com/67184840

WRITTEN & DIRECTED Jennifer Ruiz

STARRING Wendy McColm

NARRATION Freddy Gillot

FEATURING Sarah Dryden, Patrick Hayle, Ellie Culp, Casey Donahue, Chuck McCarthy + Aaron Moles and Kelly Walker

SPECIAL THANKS Shane Houghton, Cory Garcia, Sophie Arnold-Bluestone, Phillip Van Wagoner, Clint Culp, Drew Hancock, Casey Donahue, Wendy Mccolm, Aaron Moles, Erika Paget, Madeline Schichtel, Dylan Chudzynski, Aaron Bleyaert, Andrew Meridith

SHOT & EDITED Jennifer Ruiz

MUSIC Heroic Weather Conditions - Alexander Desplat Benny and the Jetts - TV Girl

[antville]

LÉON You and i Wendy McColm

LÉON You and i Wendy McColm

February 13, 2019 3:37:38 PM CET February 13, 2019 3:37:38 PM CET

kevathens

www.youtube.com

a post (http://bit.ly/2GGFQYS) from antville: http://bit.ly/LlSWZe